Adjustable presser foot support



June 20, MUR|NQ ADJUSTABLE PRESSER FOOT SUPPORT Filed June 29, 1966 FIG.

FIG. 2

FIG4

FIG. 3

FIG. 7

INVENTOR. MATTHEW MURINO JOHN P. CHANDLER H IS ATTORN EY.

United States Patent 3,326,160 ADJUSTABLE PRESSER FOOT SUPPORT MatthewMurino, 4064 Edson Ave., Bronx, N.Y. 10466 Filed June 29, 1966, Ser. No.561,451 1 Claim. (Cl. 112-240) This invention relates to sewing machinesand relates more particularly to a novel means for supporting a presserfoot or a presser foot bar carried by the head of the machine.

It is frequently necessary to replace one presser foot with another whena different type of sewing operation is to be performed and the meansinvariably employed for securing the foot in place is a screw with aknurled head which must be tightened by hand in each operation.

An important object of the present invention is to provide spring urgedsecuring means for securing the presser foot in place, the meansincluding a telescopic housing enclosing a compression spring and whenthe spring is compressed, by moving the two opposed ends of thetelescopic housing together, the pressure of a headed pin against thepresser bar is released and the latter simply falls off. Moving the endstogether as aforesaid is accomplished by manual pressure against one endof the housing, the other end being fixed on the presser foot bar. In analternative arrangement, the two sections are drawn together by cammeans.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a sewing machine head with a presser footbar employing the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front elevation thereof;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but showing the presser footreleased;

FIG. 4 is a section taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but showing a modification;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a section taken on line 77 of FIG. 6.

The head 10 of a conventional sewing machine is shown in FIG. 1 and itincludes a reciprocating needle bar 11 with needle 12 and a presser footbar 14 supporting a shank 16 of a presser foot 18 of conventionalconstruction, the bar 14 employing the improved means of the presentinvention for supporting the foot.

Bar 14 which is circular in cross section has at its lower end, a flatside 17 on the left, when viewed from the front, and front and rear flatsides 18 and a horizontal hole 19, as is usual in the art. The presserfoo-t shank 16 which is of channeled construction has a slot 20extending downwardly from its upper end which receives a pin 21supported in hole 19. All of the foregoing, with the exception of pin21, is conventional and forms no part of the present invention.

The pin 21 has a head 23 which is held fast against the shank by novelspring means including a telescopic housing arrangement including aninner tubular housing 25 with an end wall 26 and an outer tubularhousing 28 with an end wall 29. End wall 26 has a central opening 30which receives pin 21 with a sliding fit and end wall 29 has a threadedopening to receive threaded end 32 of the pin. The heads are urged apartby a compression spring 34. The action of the spring is to urge the pin21 to the right and its head 23 against the channeled shank, thus firmlyholding the shank in operative position on the bar.

3,326,160 Patented June 20, 1967 To release the presser foot, it is onlynecessary to push outer housing 28 to the left as indicated in FIG. 3and when the head is released the foot falls off as shown.

In this form of the invention the spring is wholly enclosed within thetelescopic tubular structure but in the modified arrangement of FIGS.5-7 the left hand end 36 of spring 38 passes through the left hand endof inner housing 25 and is held against rotation by engagement with therear flat face of presser foot bar 14. The opposite end 40 of the springpasses through an opening in end wall 29' of outer tubular housing 28and this end wall also has a short lever 40.

A pin 41 extends outwardly from inner housing 25' and passes through acurved arcuate slot 42 of the contour shown in outer cylindrical housing28'. FIG. 7 shows the position of spring 38 when the parts are at restand spring 38 is under only sufiicient compression to the head 23 of pin21 against the shank 16 of the presser foot and hold it firmly in place.Spring 38 is also at rest torsionally. When the outer cylindricalhousing is rotated in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 5, by pullinglever 40 forwardly, the pin 41 rides in slot 42, drawing the twosections of the cylindrical housing together and moves the head 23 ofpin 21 from the position of FIG. 5 to that of FIG. 6, thus releasing thepresser foot bar.

While there have been described herein what are at present consideredpreferred embodiments of the invention, it will be obvious to thoseskilled in the art that many modifications and changes may be madetherein without departing from the essence of the invention. It istherefore to be understood that the exemplary embodiments areillustrative and not restrictive of the invention, the scope of which isdefined in the appended claim, and that all modifications that comewithin the meaning and range of equivalency of the claim are intended tobe included therein.

What I claim is:

Means for detachably mounting a presser foot at the lower end of asewing machine needle bar, the presser foot having a slotted shank andthe needle bar being provided with a horizontal opening, said meanscomprising a headed pin which is permanently carried in said needle baropening and contacts one side of the shank when said shank is in placeon the bar 'with said headed pin passing through said shank slot, andmeans for urging said head against the shank and the shank against theother side of the needle bar comprising a housing formed with inner andouter telescopic sections, the end of said headed pin opposite the headbeing secured at the outer end of said outer section, one housingsection having a helical slot and the other having a fixed pin residingin the slot, whereby rotary movement of one section causes the pin tomove in the slot with a camming action and draw the housing sectionstogether and release the head from the needle bar shank, and a crank issecured to one housing section to facilitate such rotary movement.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,487,419 3/ 1924 Witkus 112-240FOREIGN PATENTS 558,824 7/ 1957 Belgium.

PATRICK D. LAWSON, Primary Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No.3,326,160 June 20, 1967 Matthew Murino It is hereby certified that errorappears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that thesaid Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

Column 2, lines 39, 40, 42, 47 and 55, for "needle", each occurrence,read presser foot Signed and sealed this 25th day of February 1969.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD J. BRENNER Edward M. Fletcher, Jr.

Commissioner of Patents Attesting Officer

